On Memorial day I'm starting a road trip. Should last about 5 days. Vegas to Sedona Az Sedona to Phoenix (visiting family) Phoenix to LA LA to Vegas. Got my snacks, water, my GPS working on the tablet (there's no GPS in the Alfa -- too much weight! Put on a clear bra last week (looks fantastic!) and a full tank of gas (a whole 10 gallons!). I fixed the trunk closing issue myself but I have a plastic wedge as a back up if it fails again. (Oh, the joys of owning an Italian car!) Can't wait for the run on 89A from Flagstaff to Sedona. If you haven't done this drive, it's amazing. I'm in no hurry. Plan to stop here and there. Might need to to give my butt a rest! The car has about 400 miles on it now. The tires are scrubbed in and it handles even a bit better now. So far the most common question I've been asked: "What is that?" (Who makes that? What kind of car is that?, etc) "Alfa Romeo" "Alfa what????" (followed by a thumbs up) Let the adventure begin! Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Well the first day is over and aside from driving down mountain roads in a blinding rainstorm near Flagstaff, it went great! Biggest problem with the 4c: A total lack of space. Even with the passenger gone there's not much space in this car for a long trip. Better to ship it ahead! I have an additional cup holder and a suction grip for my Iphone. Surprises: 1) Honestly, I expected to be beat the hell out of and I wasn't at all. The car doesn't make you feel you're on a jackhammer. In fact, the ride is really nice on most roads. 2) The seat and driving position were not an issue at all. I didn't feel tired or hurt or in any way wishing the ride would end. The seats are far more comfortable than my 2014 Mini which drive me crazy in an hour. The Alfa -- nothing. 3) The sound didn't make we want to go shoot someone. The so-called "drone" is really just the engine and exhaust. It's an even tone that doesn't get on your nerves. In a normal car you would hear road noise. In the Alfa, you hear engine and exhaust. I prefer engine and exhaust! 4) Its remarkably stable and dramaless above 100. The feels completely planted with no lift or excessive wind noise. If you weren't looking at the speedo and hearing the motor, you would think you were doing 60 MPH. 75 to 100 is lightning fast as you're in the peak of the torque from the turbo's. Maybe a slight turbo lag but then BANG! 5) Fuel economy is just remarkable. I averaged 33.5 MPG going 70 MPH on average and climbing 6000 feet from Kingman to Flagstaff. The lowest real time reading I saw was 25 MPG. It's nice to see factory numbers actually match what you get in the real world. I never got what Chevy promised with the C7 in 4 cylinder mode. 6) Front and side visibility is excellent and to be honest, you get used the rear. I know exactly where the cars are I'm passing. I still take a glance out the back 3/4 but I never feel like I don't know if there's someone there or not. Backing out however is an adventure -- and nail biter. Now for what I did expect: This is not the kind of car you can just sit back and not pay attention to what you're doing. The steering is amazingly precise so any pressure will make the car move right or left and potentially out of your lane. So, it's important to be aware of what you're doing and don't horse around. After a while you get used to it but you still need to pay attention. When you turn hard into a tight corner, the steering gets really heavy as it loads up. You have to wrestle with it in the tight turns. No wimpy people need apply. A good forearm work out. I used a GPS program on my Iphone and Spotify for Music and sending both by Bluetooth to the car's Audio system. I even took these pictures while running both apps. Until they come up with a single DIN Apple Car play, this is the next best thing. I kept the phone charged using the car's iphone connector. So far the Alfa has performed flawlessly (given that I fixed the trunk release problem myself on Saturday). It's fun, fast, and so much more exciting to drive than the 100 SUV's I passed today. Next stop a short run to Phoenix and spend the day with my family. Not too many pictures today as I was pretty busy in the rain. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Take 89 south out of Sedona through Jerome and over Mingus then head to Phoenix. Best road in the area - racetrack smooth and less traffic then that pothole filled cluster f--- that is 89a from flag to Sedona. Enjoy. The alpha seems like a fun car.
Interesting driving impressions. Hopefully, the rain has kept your 4C bug-free... don't forget to pose your ride in front of the sights. Which wrap did you use on your car?
Have a great trip! These cars are made for driving. One of our editors just drove our long-term 4C from Michigan to its new home at our Southern California office. He took some video along the way and that's here: Watch as We Drive Our Alfa Romeo 4C 2,789 Miles Across the Country I've been daily driving the car ever since (about a month now) and it gets easier and easier to live with. Our car has the so-called racing exhaust (no muffler) and it is quite loud -- I feel slightly bad for others in my neighborhood each morning!
Finished my trip today 1677 miles averaging 32 MPG. Today was non-stop from the beach in LA to Vegas strip on one tank of gas (10 gallons). I had 0.7 left from a full 10 gallon start. It's remarkable as most of the time I was over 85 MPH. The car ran perfectly with no issues at all. Hard rain, 105 degree desert heat, wind and fog --- nothing stopped it. No wind noise, no rattles. Could it be they created a bullet proof Alfa? Is the world coming to an end? Honestly, this car has been a ball to drive for the past 5 days. Never a dull moment. I would do another trip in it in a heartbeat. I think.... Tahoe!
Love these type of threads! Thanks for sharing, sounds like a great trip and that the Alfa is a serious contender/entry into the marketplace.
Great info. Thanks What was longest stint you had in car. I do 3 hrs in lotus and need to check into physical therapy. Hows a/c work in desert heat?
Definitely a few mountain passes, please. I'm really impressed by the fuel consumption numbers. I think this bodes well for the other consumables, brakes/tires/clutch. What a car, enjoy it in good health.
Nice write up Mayor. I saw, in person, my first 4C this past Saturday and WOW what a gorgeous car. I am arranging a test drive for later this week. A few good video's.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySvb44ucuIE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnuNv77rB0Q
I'll say 3 things again 1) this car is not for everyone. Some will HATE it. Some will LOVE it. 2) it's far from perfect. Some things you have to use a blind eye for. 3) it's the car Ferrari has forgotten how to build and they won't let Maserati build
AC is not a problem in this car. It has a sort of 1990's style (more maybe Fiat 500?) simple turn knobs and no climate control. So, you adjust yourself. Honestly, I've become to hate climate control systems as the computers seem to want what they want them to do an not what I want them to do. The AC system is cold and the cabin small so I ever used it at full power. Normally I set the cold and fan speed at 1/2. There apparently isn't any Max Cool settings that I found. Next month in Vegas will be the real test. But in Phoenix city driving over 100F, I had no problems.
I did drive MR2's, as DD's, for 25+yr's so the "mid-engine" compromise is bearable as well as the limited storage. Having only two seats also helps in the filtering out process, get it? I am a tad surprised though that you did not "Go Pro" some video considering the great roads you drove, for shame! lol PS, Just between us another .5 Bar of boost would be a "the smile is permanent" sort of thing.
I don't have a go pro but I did think about it. You can get an aftermarket box for the 4c that boosts the HP to 300. It runs about 2 grand which is pretty price IMO
"After thoughts" go with the territory, guilty myself. $2K for an extra 63HP is absurd especially if it is 'crank' hp and not whp. A MBC and one or two hour's on a dyno would barely cost $500 and yield another 63-100RWHP but I digress. Great road trip though, good times.
There are absolutely no space behind the seats? You cant take a trip if you have a passenger unless you fedex your stuff?
The trunk holds one suitcase that is like the airline type for overhead space. No glove box, 2 little useless cup holders and that's about it. I put my computer bag on the passenger seat because it would not fit on the truck with my suitcase. The front hood does not open at all. It's actually bolted into place. I've seen pictures of what's under there and it's full with stuff. It's not meant to be a GT but I used it that way. It is what it is... a toy. It just happens to be my toy.
Did I see you heading east on Artesia towards the 91 freeway in the Gardena area of SoCal last week? I was driving our red 4C west and the red car that went by in the opposite lane had out of state plates that I couldn't identify. First time I've seen another on the road while driving one myself.
